Chance Vought F-4U-4 Navy

 

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Chance Vought F-4U-4 Navy

Item#: MPF4U4N

MSRP Price: $299.95

Factory Direct Price: $199.95




Manufacturer: Chance Vought

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Chance Vought F-4U-4 Navy

In February 1938, the US Navy Bureau of Aeronautics published a requests for proposals (RFP) for both a twin-engine and a single-engine fighter. In April 1938, Vought proposed its two designs to the US Navy. One, called V-166A by Vought and "Vought A" by the USN, was powered by the R-1830. The other, the V-166B or "Vought B", was designed around the new Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engine. This was an 18-cylinder, two-row air-cooled radial. This engine would later also be installed in the competing Grumman F6F Hellcat and in the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt for the USAAF, but the new Vought fighter was the first to use this engine. The R-2800 later acquired a reputation as a powerful and very reliable engine. But it was also very bulky, and aircraft powered by it tended to be big. In May, the Bureau of Aeronautics evaluated the proposals. The "Vought B" was deemed to be the best one, with a merit figure of 86.4 on a scale from 0 to 100. Hence on 11 June, a contract was given for development of the Vought V-166B, the fighter that would become famous as the F4U Corsair.

For storage aboard carriers, the wing folded upward outboard of the main landing gear legs. The wheels folded backwards, turning through 90 degrees while retracting, so that they were stored flat within the wing. The entire trailing edge inboard of the ailerons was provided with flaps. The outer wing panels were covered with fabric aft of the wing spar. The pilot sat in a large cockpit over the wing trailing edge. The view straight forward over the engine cowling was poor, even more so than common in single-seat fighters of the day. The view too the sides was reasonable, although the cockpit canopy was heavily framed. No concessions were made to the rearward view, the aft of the cockpit being faired into a gently sloping fuselage decking. The tailplanes and fins had rounded tips, and the control surfaces were fabric covered. Armament consisted of one .50 in. gun in each wing, and a .50 in. and a .30 in.in the engine cowl decking. There was also room for 20 small anti-aircraft bombs, stored in the wings.

The first F4U-4 was delivered to the US Navy on 31 October 1944. The F4U-4 was powered by a C-series Double Wasp engine. The installed model was the R-2800-18W, later replaced by the R-2800-42W. It had a war emergency power of 2760hp. A four-bladed propeller replaced the three-bladed one of the F4U-1. A chin scoop was added to the underside of the engine cowling. During the F4U-4 production, the cockpit was redesigned again. It now incorporated a flat, bullet-proof windscreen, a revised canopy, an armored seat, and an improved instrument panel. Production included 2050 F4U-4s with six .50 guns or the F4U-4C with four 20 mm cannon. The F4U-4 arrived late in WWII, and served only during the last four months of the conflict.

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